Bike to School blog - now what will I write about?

This week has been Bike To School Week 2013 (BTSW) - an event organised by Sustrans, to help schools encourage their pupils to cycle.

For our boys every week is a Bike to School Week. N is now in Year 2, and he has cycled to school virtually every day, firstly in the trailer, and more recently on the trailer bike.

I was delighted therefore, when I opened an email earlier this week, to find a request from Sustrans to write about our cycling to school experiences for their blog this week. The brief was very wide:

"anything that might tie with BTSW would be good… if the school your children goes to is doing it or not, or whether a lot of children cycle there and you are already at the point where every school is a BTSW etc, or perhaps why as a parent you are happy for your children to cycle to school (and whether you do have concerns, or did previously)"

What shall I write in my Bike to School blog?

It was difficult to know where to start. I considered writing about our school, and the wonderful work that one, tireless, Teaching Assistant does week in, week out, to encourage cycling and walking.

I almost wrote about how our school isn't doing anything specific for Bike to School Week, as they did the Bike It challenge earlier in the year, and usually have another cycling week at the end of the summer term, with Bike It breakfasts and other organised activities.

But then I decided that there is no point ignoring the huge elephant in the room - most parents don't let their children cycle to school because it isn't safe. This is the post I ended up writing - my personal thoughts about letting N cycle school. He's getting to the point that cycling by himself is imminent, so it's very timely.

I'd be interested to know your thoughts on the post. And can your children cycle safely to school? At what age did they start cycling?

There's a comments box at the bottom of this page if you'd like to leave your thoughts. Thanks.